Alan Mussell was born in Santa Maria, California, and received his BA degree in Mathematics and Music at UCSB in 1960 and his MAT degree in Mathematics and French at Reed College in 1969. He served in the Peace Corps in the Ivory Coast from 1962 to 1964 and again in Kenya from 1964 to 1966. His experiences in these two countries instilled in him a life-long interest in languages and cultures around the world, an interest that led him not only to teach in other countries—Pakistan, Philippines and Mexico—but also to visit so many more. Mr. Mussell has been living since 2003 with his wife Caz in Oro Valley, Arizona, just north of Tucson. He spends his time writing, enjoying the company of friends, tutoring students in mathematics and physics, hiking in the hills nearby, visiting his children and their families near Ashland and Seattle, playing the piano, and, of course, traveling.
